Fellow Berkserker, MarcF, set up a spontaneous sushi dinner with the boys last night, I think most of our wives just happened to be out of town. We hit our favorite local sushi joint, Kabooki, which if any of you come to town, this is my top recommendation. Super creative Chef, and a swank atmosphere that even Fu would approve. All the pretty people come here. And us, too.
We figured a little ‘ole Krug Clos de Mesnil 2004 would set the tone off right for a guy’s night. Coincidental that I had a couple of bottles of Krug last week for my wife’s birthday, and have been drinking a lot of champagne in general lately, so was quite a treat to try a special bottling of Krug that I have not had before. As I have noted on the Covid thread, while my sensory perception is not back 100%, I seem to do very well with higher acid (not higher ass) wine, especially Champagne and Sav Blancs. These are in the zone with me. The Krug was superb. I will also say, it’s still coiled fairly tight, like a spring ready to explode with another level. What it showed, however, is incredibly clean, crystalline yellow and white fruits. Kiss of honey, lemons with a heightened level of minerality. I’m not very sophisticated about champagne, so cannot speak to the dosage on this bottling, but I do think the wine was more about power, structure, acid than effervescence. And the bubbles it did showcase where tiny. Love the more golden, rich color on this wine, evocative of the overall experience to the wine. The two bottles of NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 167eme we had the prior week - at the same restaurant and with the same oyster starters - were more approachable and had more of that archetype brioche, toasty, yeasty thing going on, which I really like. While this Clos de Mesnil is another level of purity and fruit, between us friends, it is impossible to justify the price for the country folk among us. Incidentally, both Krugs are a dream pairing with the Kabooki oyster starters, which have a spicey kick to them. (96+ pts.)
To its credit, the 2015 Edmond Vatan Sancerre Clos la Néore held its own following the Krug. This is another special wine that I have had quite a bit of these past 6 months. One of the more ripe and meaty Vatan vintages that I have had in a very long time, and much more open and expressive even with just a few years on it. Has an opulence to it that works exceedingly well given the structure and acid that this wine delivers. It’s like the wine gods poured this elixir through a sift filled with river bed stones, minerals and other detritus of the earth. If you are looking for pineapples, cat pee and green grass, this is not your Sauvignon Blanc. Like the Krug, it simply has incredible density and purity of clean white and yellow fruits. A really powerful vintage of Vatan. (95 pts.)
As the tuna came out, we popped a 2017 Chateau Pape Clement Blanc. Our server was enjoying our wines with us, and he was the first to comment on this wine - and incidentally, by his own admission, he’s not a wine connoisseur - wow, a lot of oak on this one. Yes. It does. Like lots of it. An impossible flip to this wine after the Krug and Vatan. I had maybe 1/3 of a glass and it is not worthy of a note.
And then we segued to a smattering of Burgs. I’ll let MarcF speak to those, as Burgs are his wheelhouse.
Overall, a killer night with my best friends. Actually, a killer day, as I cycled long with some of them that morning. The Florida cool weather is here! Time for celebration.